Changing Zwarte Piet is hard to do October 24th 2016 will go down in history as the day when the destruction of Dutch society began, from within! RTL announced that as of 2016, none of their Sinterklaas programmes will feature a traditional blackface Zwarte Piet. The much loved (not black) ZP has received a makeover, and will now look like a white man that has been down a … [Read more...] about What Expats Need to Know About RTL Changing Zwarte Piet
blackface
Dutch tolerance and Zwarte Piet a personal view
This is the first and last post that the Shallow Man will write about Zwarte Piet this year. Like many of you I'm sick of the whole thing. Today the Raad van State will make a decision with regards to the appearance of Zwarte Piet and the recent court ruling in Amsterdam that Zwarte Piet is racially offensive. Amsterdam city council, being reasonable people, plan to make some … [Read more...] about Dutch tolerance and Zwarte Piet a personal view
An interview with Zwarte Piet
The Shallow Man, in his never ending quest to fulfil the requests of his readers, went to great efforts to secure an interview with the man who is a hero to so many Dutch children. A man, that to many represents the very essence of Dutch culture, yes after much negotiation with his agent, press officers and lawyers, I'm pleased to present an interview with Zwarte Piet. Now this … [Read more...] about An interview with Zwarte Piet
They are not black, they have been through a Chimney
The Dutch Love of Blackface The Shallow Man is an elegant but aged fossil. I've been around since the days when Madonna still made decent music when Mick Jagger claimed that he wouldn't continue performing once he reached the age of forty. I can recall a young boy who used to sing and dance with his four brothers, whose talent shone out even then. I remember when having a color … [Read more...] about They are not black, they have been through a Chimney